Latch for automobile doors



March` 21, 1933. A, L L MBET 1,902,172

LATCH FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS Filed OGM 6, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet l ATroRNEY March 21, 1933 A. L.. LAMBERT LATCH FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 6, 1925 ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 2l, 1933 retain UNITED STATESg PATENTVoFFiCs ALBERT L. LAMBERT, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO HEINTZ OF PENNSYLVANIA MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A. CORPORA'LIONv LATCH ron AUToMomLEnoons Application filed October 6, 1925. `Serial No; v60,'2'09Q' i beyond this stem, and. accordingly the width of the glass is limited and restricted. v

' Theprincipal object of myinvention is to provide a latch for doors which permits the glass, whether lowering yor .iixed, to extend the full width ofl the door, or nearly so, and

at the same time to provide a latch whichA maybe operated from both sides of the door. Another object of my invention is to provide a simple, durable and light .latch construetion'an'd mountingof the character described. Otherobj ects of my invention willbe in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinaften In accordance with myinvention, the 0perating'handle whichis at the opposite side of the glass from the latch bar is connected to the latchbar to operate the same by parts which extend across theedge of the glass and door at, or even outside of, the edge of the door, thus permitting the glass 'in the door to extend between the latch and this op` erating member tothe very'edge of the door. Ifdesired, the operating'parts which extend across the edge of the door maybe enclosed in a housing sectionwhich is located and shaped to seat ina recess in the jamb and to engage between two opposite` resilient plungers or buffers in .the recess, to guide the door into proper position when beingclosed, and to hold the door, whenv closed, against vibra# tion i and rattling against the -j amb.

In order that a clearer understanding of my invention may be had, attention is hereby directed to the accompanying drawings, for-ming a part ofthis application, and illusf trating one possible embodiment of this inventiOn. Referring to the drawings, Fig.V 1 is a crossfsectional view of a lock embodying thisinventiomshown mounted in a door, and

thereon and the outside of panel Inside is taken on the line lf-,lof Fig. 3; Fig.v 2 isA asimilar view, except that it is taken on a different plane, as on line 2-2 of Fig. 3; Fig.. 3 is aver-tical sectionalview thereof, including a fragment of the door janib, and isjtaken ontheline 3 3 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 4L is a 'side view of the lock, looking from the outside of the door, the structure beingpartly broken Y away. Similar reference characters refer to 'similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

side'of the door 1 is an operating lhandle 2, which hasa shank 3 extendingthroughthe outerdoor panel and through a reenforcing plate 5,V positioned against panel 4, and through another plate16 spaced rearwardly of plate 5. Here this shaft ends. A sleeve 7 is placed ont-he shank '3 between a'iiangev 8 the panel, shank Sis square andvengagesfin a square perforation in the hub -9 of a lever 1.0, which has an oifsetportion11"extending through `a slot 12in plate 6. y

Atthe inside of the door the operating handlejl' has a square shank 111 extending through the inner door panel 15, through a l reenforcing plate 16, positioned againstthe panel, and through anotherl plate 17 ,spaced inwardly from plate 16.1 The shaft extends no further. Insidev the panel the square shank 14 of the operating handle'engagesin a square perforation in the hub 18 of an'operating lever 19. y l p The latch bar 20 is slidably mounted between plates 16 and 17 andis confined between lugs 21 punchedl in from plateY 16, and has a slot 22 penetratedby a pin 23 which is mounted across plates 16 and*v 17. Aspring2t, engaging the Vrear of the latch bar and secured to lugs 25 on plate16, constantly urges the latch portion 26 of bar 2Ol outwardly of the door edge; At its rear end, latch bar -20 has a shoulder 2,7, against the/forward side of which bears one side edge of the leverl 19, so that, by turning handle 13 to move lever 19y inwardly,the latch may be retracted. Lever 19 yis prevented from overmuch vforward n movement' by engaging pin 23.

, 30 designates the door edge panel which has 100 Referring to the drawings, at the outer l `toward the inside of the door.

its outer edge engaged within the marginal fold 3l of panel 4. A reenforcing strip 32 is secured to the rear of this panel 30, and has yan indented longitudinal central portion 33, to

Vflange 40 which seats against one wall of the angular portion 36 of the reenforcing strip'32; Plate 16 Vhas a flange 41-extending around the edge of the door to the flange 40 of edge panel 30. Flange 41, however, is formed with an yintermediate outwardly projecting portion .42, which is hollow, and preferably tapered vertically, the narrower portion being A recess 43 to receive this door portion 42 is provided in the door jamb 44, and in this recess are located upper and lower resilient plungers or buffers 45, which are engaged and wedged apart when the door Wedge 42 enters the amb recess 43, as when the door.` is closed.Y The cooperation of wedge 42 kwith ythe recess and plungers serves to locate and guide the door when it is being closed, and keeps the door,

vwhen closed, from vibratingv and rattling in thej amb.

This door .portion 42 also provides a hous- Y ing for an operating part of the latch mechanism, whereby the latch may be retracted by manipulating the handle 2 on the outside of the door. Thisportion of the latch mechanism includes a rock shaft 50, which is rotatably housed in the recess formed behind the projecting portion 42. Shaft 50 has a trunnion 51 on one end rotatably seated in a perforation in a strip or plate? 52 secured to reenforcing plate 30, and has at its other end a trunnion 53, which is rotatably seated in a perforation in a flange 54v of aplate or strip 55 which is seated within the portion 42 and at its inner end has a flange 56 secured to plate 16. At the inner side of the door, shaft 50 has a lever arm 57, which is connected t0 operating lever 19 by a link 58. At the outer side of the door, shaft 50 has a lever arm 60, which at its outer endrests on the top of the outer end of operating lever 11. Reenforcing strip 30 has a suitable perforation or aperture 61 through which lever 60 extends. A stoplug 62 is provided on plate 6 to limit downward movement of lever 11. When handle 2 is turned to raise lever 11, the inner vend of arm 60 will rise'. This will cause shaft 5() to rotate to raise the inner end kof arm`57, and by reason of the connection between arm 57 and operating lever 19, this latter vlever will be moved rearwardly and will retract the latch bar 20 and its latch 26. When handle 2 is then released, spring 24 will return the parts to initial position. `It will also benoted that when the latch is retracted by turning handle'13, the rock shaft v50 will rotate and its arm 60 will rise, but lever 11 will not rise nor will handle 2 turn. This avoids unnecessaryv friction and resistance to the operation of the latch from inside the'door.. v

It is to be noted particularly-that theglass 35 may Vextend-to the reenforcing strip 32, which is at the very edge of the door. This `is possible because the rock shaft150 is outconstruction also maybe arranged to function as a door locating and confining device. Obviously,`if desired, the portion 42 need not be extended outwardly ofthe door edge, and the rock shaft 50 neednot necessarily be located outside vof the door edge, but" may l be located tothe rear of this edge. Even so, the glass can be wider than would be possible if a latch operating member extended straight across the door between the handles.

As many changes kcould be made in the y above construction and as many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the' above description or shown inthe accompanying drawings shall be interpreted'as illustrative and not ina Yon one side ofthe door, a handle on the other side of the door for operatingthe latch, and latch operating 4mechanism operatively yconnecting said handle and latch, said mechanism including a rock shaft, a housing pro- A jecting outside of theV door edge, and said shaft being mounted in said housing outside of the edge of the door, said housing having vertical taper increasing from the inner side of the door, and a door jamb having a recess to receivesaid projecting housing when the door is closed.

2. The combination with a door, of a latch bar mounted on the door, a first pivoted operating lever, adjacent one side of the door and engaging the bar, a first handle for pivoting said lever to retract thelatch bar, a second pivoted operating lever on the `opposite side of the door, a second handle for pivoting this lever, a rock shaft extending across the door and offset laterally from said handles, a first arm on said rock shaft engaging over said second operating lever, whereby when said second lever is raised said. shaft will be rocked, aJ second,l arm on said rock shaft, a link connecting said second arm to said first operating lever, whereby when said shaft is rocked by saidsecond operating lever said latch bar is retracted, said operating levers and rock shaft arms being spaced apart a substantial distance crosswise of the door.

This specification signed this 2 day of October, 1925.

ALBERT L. LAMBERT. 

